Irish Senator describes Easter Rising rebels as ‘traitors’

Irish Senator David Norris has sparked fury in Ireland by saying that the Easter Rising rebels were ‘traitors to their own cause’.

He made the controversial comments in a speech to mark the 100 year anniversary of the passage of the Home Rule bill.

He referred to the poem Easter 1916 by WB Yeats. He said: “If one looks at 1916, I believe Yeats was correct in his first impression of some of these people when he said that they were vainglorious. Indeed, they were. They were afraid that history would write them out.

“They were seen by the British as traitors to the Empire but they were traitors to their own cause because Eoin MacNeill, the commander-in-chief, had cancelled the Rising and yet they ignored that.”

Pádraig Pearse singled out for criticism

He singled out Pádraig Pearse, who read out the Proclamation for Irish Independence from the General Post Office, for criticism.

Senator Norris continued: “I have read Claíomh Solais by Pádraig Pearse and all the racist pap in it about the Gaul and the Gael and all this kind of stuff.

1 Response

Disappointed that David would be so critically judgemental of those who gave so much for an ideal and died for their beliefs. The current climate of politicians are a long way off considering their treatment of the homeless and the landless. It is high time to revisit what Cothrom na Féinne was about and rid ourselves of ‘Cute Hoor’ selv serving power grabbing till watchers.